LocationTriple Island is located in Brown Passage about 25 miles west
of Prince Rupert.

Request for Historical Info and Photos

Erik Milton has been working as a lightkeeper on Triple Island since January 2000. He is looking for historical information and photo's pertaining to the station. Information regarding the construction of the light, the people involved, past keepers, storms, humour and any other stories of interest would be welcomed. If any of you have information about Triple Island, or old photographs, Erik would appreciate it very much if you shared them with him. He is especially interested in speaking with keepers that have worked on Triple in the past. You can contact Erik by clicking here. Thank you.

History The Triple Island light was built to guide mariners through the rocky waters of Brown Passage, on their way to the port of Prince Rupert. The tender for construction bids was put out by the Department of Marine in 1916, and by 1920 the lighthouse was staffed and running. Triple Island was a difficult place for keepers to work. There is little room, no vegetation, and the machinery is housed in the same building as the living quarters. Early lightkeepers at Triple had more then their fair share of trials and tribulations (for some of the interesting stories about Triple, and other lights, see the late Donald Graham's book, titled "Lights of the Inside Passage"). Conditions are much the same on Triple today as they were in the 1920's. To help the keepers keep their sanity Triple Island was made into a rotational station in 1960 and is now run on the same 28 day lay system as the Coast Guard ships. Satellite tv and internet, furnace heating, and other modern amenities have also helped to make Triple a more pleasant station to work at.

Weather Reporting
The first marine weather report goes out at 0330 in the morning. The last is sent out at 2130. This continues every three hours throughout the day, 365 days a year. Each report includes information on sky condition, visibility, precipitation, wind speed and direction, wave height, and ocean swell height and direction. This information is transmitted to the Coast Guard Radio Station in Prince Rupert where it is put on the Continuous Marine Broadcast VHF weather channel.

Five of the weather reports each day also contain supplemental aviation weather information about clouds, air temperature and dew point for use by aircraft pilots.

Mariners and pilots are welcome to call Triple Island any time between 0330 and 2130 for current weather and sea conditions. We monitor various VHF radio channels and can also be reached on the ALN circuit by calling 250.627.0344, extension 875.

Transportation The lightstation is accessed by boat only with great difficulty and in the best sea conditions. The shoreline is rocky and there is no protected water. Supplies, mail, and keeper rotation are done once a month by Coast Guard helicopters. Fuel and other supplies are brought by Coast Guard ships, usually once per year.

Communication The primary communications link is by radio-telephone through the Coast Guard Radio Station in Prince Rupert (see "Weather Reporting"). The lightkeepers also monitor several VHF marine radio channels. Cellular coverage at Triple is good and keepers often have personal cell phones.

Lightkeepers Due to the nature of Triple Island keepers are rotated every 28 days on a lay system. Two keepers work on each shift. As of October 2006 the keepers at Triple Island are Glenn Borgens and Erik Milton on one shift, and Richard Rose and Bob Vetter on the other.